Body Contouring Surgery - How Soon After the Weight Loss?

By Dr Barry Eppley

While some patients may be anxious to get on with the 'final' stage of their weight loss journey, it is important to wait until at least several months after you have reached your weight loss goal. This allows your body a period to recover and adjust metabolically to the new weight, allows time for the skin to accommodate to your now smaller frame, and allows you to acquire new eating habits for long-term weight maintenance.

While there is no magic waiting period, most plastic surgeons would like their patients to have a stable weight for close to six months before considering elective body contouring surgery. A stable weight means minimal fluctuations of only a few pounds. Patients who have had gastric bypass, due to intestinal absorption changes, aren't usually ready for body contouring surgery for a year or longer after the surgery. Patients who have had the lapband procedure lose weight at a much slower rate and it may be much longer than a year after their procedure. Extreme weight loss patients who have done it on their own without surgery can be done within six months after they have hit a stable weight.

The most important reason to wait is to allow your body time to recover. Wound healing for almost every body contouring procedure requires a lot of nutrients and energy to heal properly. You want your energy stores and your immune function to be in the best shape possible. In short, you don't want to be malnourished going into major surgery. (particularly when it is 'elective') Many extreme weight loss patients have some metabolic deficiency. In a recent article published in the August 2008 issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery by Agha-Mohammadi et al, they state that many post-bariatric surgery patients have protein-calorie malnutrition as well as various vitamins and mineral deficiencies that may limit optimal health and healing. With the stress of major body contouring surgery, even a mild nutritional problem may become apparent in the postoperative period as evidenced by wound healing problems.

Dr Barry Eppley is a board-certified plastic surgeon in private practice in Indianapolis, Indiana at Clarian Health Systems. (http://www.eppleyplasticsurgery.com) He writes a daily blog on plastic surgery, spa therapies, and medical skin care at http://www.exploreplasticsurgery.com